HALLO AMERICKA !

Здорово! So basically my outlook after the transfer here has turned from going, "what?" to "that was totally funny." So like I said last week we have been trying to find people to start teaching. I have only actually taught a real first lesson like twice. But hey we got our new investigator and she seems accepting, but she is busy like everyone else is in the summer. Everyone loves to go to the dachas, which are these shacks basically and with tons of plants with flowers vegetables and fruit. It is pretty cool. We went over to an investigator's house and helped with service this past week and helped him in the back in the garden. There we did tricep workouts, pull-ups, and I chopped wood for the winter with my companion. Then of course we sat down for a good cup of tea (herbal don’t worry) that is all they mostly drink for tea out here. I love tea! It was good because it was fresh mint from the garden. Vinegratne tea is the bomb! Yes hot tea on a hot day!

Sweat, sweat, and sweat that is the main outcome of a lot we did this past week. So besides sweating from the tea we have been sweating from walking basically everywhere in our area trying to be moving advertisements and it has been funny. This past week I have gotten, " HALLO AMERICKA!" like at least eight times a day. My language has been coming about well, I can understand a bit more and one guy on the bus was hilarious! He walked up and was like "Hey Yankee! Everything in America alright?! GO HOME!" Then he proceeded to shout, Oklahoma, California, New York! hahaha So I preceded to name off states also.

SO we walked then we walked, and then we walked and set up meetings. The Russian people are really hospitable and kind. We met with this grandma and we had fake coffee, bread, and salad with her.  It was interesting and their salads are different here. They mainly consist of tomatoes; cucumbers, onions, noodles, lettuce and I don’t know what else, I just eat it. Then we had a lesson with her and she followed up with praying to the moon. hahaha

One awesome thing happened this week was we got in contact with a less active member and got him doing the right things again and especially with prayer. That is the first thing to go when you start going off the path to eternal happiness and into the world. Initiating that faith is huge. Our communication between God and us just becomes weak and we become desensitized. We have been meeting with as many in-actives as possible and one meeting was with teenagers who complain, complain, and complain.  I was about to go nuts. I was thinking to myself, "Hey, look I know that what we are teaching may not be new to you but listen because I guarantee you will need it!" then it made me think to myself, well duh you did the same thing! hahaha   Ignorant yes I know.

I have realized that withholding the fact that I am from Vegas from some people is important. Some Russians think it is an awesome city! Yeah I love Vegas because that is where I grew up, but there is more to life than the flashy lights that over time they burnout and you are left in the dark. That is the message to in-actives this week and one of my favorite scripts. 3 Nephi 12: 12-16.  It talks about being the salt of the earth and being the example.

Missionary work on the streets anywhere is tough. The best way is through the members. I have been pondering on this subject and I decided we need an activity that isn’t churchy but fun like a fireside. So I brought up this idea and the zone leaders liked it and we are going to plan and execute. Bringing out the student council skills. hahahaha . Because the members here are in part member homes and they need something every once in a while to look forward to and to unite them. We met with the branch president this week and he has to be one of the nicest people ever. Sort of tells you the importance of marrying in the temple. Plus if you are doing missionary work then try to get the family involved because if not then you create a riff in the relationships of the home. That is something I always been aware of since the MTC.

Love ya’ll and thanks for the letters I enjoy reading them.

Elder LeFevre

August 8

Hope you liked the pictures. There is more of course, but they take a while to load.

So we had an exciting past week here in Perm. I got to see my old companion off on the train and that meant of course free junk! ha-ha Whooo!   It was different changing companions and hope all is well with Elder H!   So now I am with the former zone leader, Elder F who is my trainer until he goes home after this transfer. I am super excited because he knows the area pretty well and wants to help my language skills become better. I am retaining words, it was just difficult to find an effective system at first, because hearing the word in context in Russian is hard due to the word jumping into a case into a puzzle. But all is well I am picking five words a day and trying to use them in my conversations to master them. We bought a scale and we have been working out even harder everyday running through the forest and up steep hills and say goodbye to all that MTC weight! hahaha 

So my companion and I have been finding, finding, and finding new investigators. We accomplished to stop by and visit one investigator and have a vague first lesson due to her son being there, contradicting every word, even though she was accepting. We did come away with another meeting for next week!  

So a ton is starting to change here for me! There is something I wish to share from my studies on the mission and it is based off the talk given by Elder Wirthlin called, "Come What May and Love It." Change constantly causes a path or paths to be placed before us in life. At many times we are scared of change, whether that be leaving high school and starting college, new teacher for science, or your tire blew out!  I consider all these levels of change, and when the moment presents itself you need to ask yourself, are you ready? It is unavoidable. You either react to the moment or act in the moment, you choose. One only leads us to become battered, torn, beaten, and dizzy. Because you have simply chosen before the choice was laid to be passive. "Do not be a doormat"

Serving in this area has been tough and the language will come, I have no doubt and I dare not doubt my Heavenly Father.  He has sent me here for a reason and it is my job to fulfill my duty and work through the tough times ahead.  Life isn't supposed to be easy. A mission is not supposed to be easy.  I turned to my Father in Heaven in sincere prayer everyday and ask for strength and recognize my weaknesses to allow me opportunities to strengthen me in those areas. Don’t underestimate the comfort we can receive through prayer, and knowing who we are! There have been times where I allowed myself to react to the situation given and not act. When we allow these things to happen we think to ourselves later “hmm what could have been the better outcome if I did do that." Now I am saying basically what Elder Bednar and Bishop Horlacher have said, "Be that good boy or that good girl and don’t worry about it!" and "Be where you are supposed to be and do what you are supposed to do and the Lord will bless you." By doing good deeds and acting through love, the Lord will guide you down the path were we need to be. I relate it to when you first ride a bicycle and your dad has the hand and is helping you then you realize wow I am going. The hardest thing is to focus and not allow your self to fall. Act and don’t react. Because if you react then you are going to crash. It requires us to be humble and when you try to react then when you do fall, I promise it’ll be a humbling experience. Learn and press forward, and take lessons of the past and don't repeat the mistakes. Ether 12:27 (Basically the whole chapter is good!) 

Love you all and I am implementing our mission script everyday D&C 12:8

Старейшина Лефевр

Great Week !

Great week in Perm! Love it! We have had the craziest bipolar weather I have ever seen. (temps went from very humid 90’s to cool 60’s and below)

Our week started out by going to an ancient city in Russia and looking at some old buildings and sweet view of the lake there!  Later we stopped by families of the branch and we attended Sasha's birthday he got a bb gun.  I remember those days!  ha-ha  Too bad you can’t shoot the pigeons here because the "BOB's"(Babushka’s, grandmas) like them too much. They will chase you with their cane. 

We went to the рынок (market) on Tuesday as well and I bought a кепка (cap), which I sport well. I got the see the meat market and mmm did that smell good! ha-ha!  We went around the all the different stands and checked out Harry Potter 7 on DVD. YES on DVD it’s already out! Oh and so is the New Fast and Furious! Hahaha!  Basically they sell many things that could be considered illegal in US. It was great; I got to bargain down my кепка for 200 rubles! ($7.23) That is a deal!  

The rest of the week was nothing but resorting to back up plans and just work, work, and work. That’s all you need in life to have success. Just be happy first OBEDIENCE, then LOVE, Love the people, then last WORK, WORK, and WORK. Then blessings will be granted to your efforts. 

We received one of the coolest contacts the other day from a doctor whom asked us if we were Mormon, and we found out he was in SLC for a conference and saw that our church was nice and the people were nice.  He was super interested and wanted a Book of Mormon, a way to quit smoking, and to come to church!  Super cool!  We had been working so hard to find someone and lo behold it came and so did a former investigator; they want to take the lessons again! Sweet!! 

Well the other morning we woke up to water on the floor and the pipes are busted so I am sorry this is short and we got to go. 

Talk to you next week.
Love all of you!

Elder LeFevre

Kyle's District at MTC, taken back in April.

Crazy and Crowded Buses

What's up! "As I walk through the valley." This song was playing as we left an investigators house today after a guy was like, "Hey America!" The bass was bumping and we felt like straight up Good-guys, because the Lord's missionaries are! This week the buses have been insane as people have been commuting from the beach on the river and back.  I can't believe that I have almost been in the country for one transfer and I am having the best time here! There is some sweet graffiti outside the apartment and when I get back I will be able to ride on the bus or anything that requires balance with ease. (Wake-boarding watch out!)  The other day we actually went on two wheels on the bus around the curve! It was sweet and the buses have been packed! You know that joke that Jeff Foxworthy says, "How did they get 300 people on a bus?!" I can testify that this can be done.

So yesterday was my first splits and I went with Elder F in my area and we stopped by this guys house (actually a house) and gave him a lesson on the book of Mormon. It was sweet but he is a pretty thickheaded dude. I also got to teach the advanced group in English and man that was funny. The subject was goals and we have one guy come every week and try to contradict our beliefs.  What can you do? ha-ha.  It is no use arguing with the guy.  We made it a companionship goal that if we get brushed off twice in one day then we are making it a point to get a SUPER SNICKERS...Now this is the "FEAST"! We have been trying to do contacting and finding investigators right now and so much of my time is spent out in the heat. ha-ha.  For all you who thought you were going to beat me in getting a tan this year, I am sorry,  I am getting some color with being outside so much. AW Yeah!

Last P-Day was cool. We went to a heavy artillery museum and took some awesome pics! You will get to see them soon, I forgot my memory card again. SORRY, I know I have been terrible! Today we are going to a member’s house today for a b-day party and tacos and I am looking forward to a good bowl of Plov, mmm good stuff, I am becoming a champ at making it. (Plov is a dish in which a grain, such as rice or cracked wheat, is browned in oil, and then cooked in a seasoned broth, it may also contain a variety of meat and vegetables) Ooh and this week I am preparing to make Holodets (meat jello), believe it or not, it is supposed to be good! Yet, I don't trust anyone’s taste buds but my own. Oh and we went all the way up to Golovanavo last week with investigator family and it was awesome being out in the middle of no where and feeling like I was walking in a scene in "Brother Were Art Thou", along the train tracks and among the dachas! (Seasonal homes in the rural areas, like cottages or cabins) LEGIT!  Tomorrow I will be sure to take a ton of pictures as we go to our culture activity! Holovka city. Supposed to be super old! It will be great!

The language is coming and my relationship with the members is improving as well. Thanks for the inspiration. It is a little harder than I thought it would be, but that’s because I put myself at a higher standard and work ethic. It will be cool to go to Helsinki Temple on my first visa trip.

Love ya all and thanks for your prayers and support.

Elder LeFevre

Week 4 in Russia

Hello from Perm! I got to meet Pres. and Sis. R this past week and they are the coolest people in the world! They are super nice and I got a good lesson out of our meeting. I only have about 2 1/2 weeks left with Elder H and then he is gone! I was told I would be getting another trainer and I hope that follows through because I still feel like I don't know anything! ha-ha

People are awesome here in Perm and the members are great. We have been trying to get people out of their dachas and into the church! It is tuff, but it is going well serving the members and the people here. We having been dropping by those we have met with and leaving notes showing appreciation and making sure they know they are the BOMB!! English Club is going well, but we don't get too many people in there that are interested in learning about the gospel. We were talking about idioms Americans use all the time and one of them was "don't be a wet blanket" One guy answered, "O so it is the one who is the most sober at the party!" hahaha When people learn that I am from Vegas they immediately ask about my favorite fighter from the UFC and tell me about how they train in BJJ as well.

We have exciting news through out contacting on the streets we met with the same family as we did last week and got to talk to them more to convince them that we aren’t weirdo’s! The family might become investigators! Plus we had a great lesson with a girl who wants to be baptized but mom and dad want to wait until she is 18.  So we talked to her and she is going to personally ask and express her desire to be baptized to her parents. It will be awesome to receive a call. We don't go knocking on doors because someone has to let you into the stairwells here to do so. Plus the stairwells aren’t the nicest places. I feel like I’m in an old bomb shelter when I am walking through them. It is awesome! Then outside it is like the countryside and its right out of Robin Hood or something. 

LOVE YOU ALL AND HAVE AN AWESOME WEEK!


Elder LeFevre 

Lost Luggage and More

Good Day! Good Week!  I heard I will be getting my bag from the Russian government...HURRAY and About time!  Tuesday morning, we spent all day going around perm and to different offices to retrieve my bag from the airport. We were not done until about six in the afternoon. The  bureaucracy is like the DMV in the USA and you know how that can be. (Not cool) We went to the first office and they asked for my passport and copies and asked me if I speak Russian.(chut chut: small) Then they said if I could not speak it well then I could not retrieve my bag! Aghh.  We did this for some time, but the church has some cool hookups here and President A was determined to help me out.  We made it to this nice office in downtown Perm with fresh linoleum!  oohh fancy eh?!   Then she pointed at me and said, "come! SIT! What do you want to do?" I answered “I want to receive my baggage from the airport." She said, "To whom you want to give permission." I said, "Elder H, to obtain my bag in my name and I give him permission" That was it!! We spent six hours just to say a couple of sentences and I thought I had to speak well. haha Slick!! She then said I have to pay a couple thousand rubles to pay for the paper that said I give permission. 

Later that night we had tacos at an investigator's home. I have impressed the Russian people in the fact that I have loved their food and traditions. Herbal tea is good and a good time to sit and chat. (still tough to do but I play charades and I am becoming pro!)

Wednesday and most of the week we made our way stopping by inactives and I think that it has settled in that my fear of big dogs is conquered. Because there are like a 'billion' everywhere and they are pretty nasty but they leave you alone. About everyday this past week we have been eating well and by well we made pizza, tacos, fruit salad, omelets..etc   We are trying to run every morning and it is crazy tough to get used to how humid it gets here. The other night I just took a freezing shower just for the heck of it to go to bed not sweating!  btw the water is like an ice bath ha-ha.  I have this hoola-hoop motion that I like to do it works. ha-ha.  Me and my companion like to point out all the funny stuff we see. Like the other day we were walking and about three guys got up out of the grass like zombies (drunk) and ran off into the woods! ha-ha   Then while we were meeting with a couple of members in the park there came a taxi that pulled up and a couple hooked up a sound system and played some music and they started dancing and singing.  Like old time Russian music! ha-ha our member friend started to dance too and it was just awesome hahahaha, that  made my day.  Another funny thing is everyone likes to stop on the side of the road and do their business, and one guy fell over during. ha-ha

Oh  and my first crazy grandma story...AWESOMENESS!!  So we were stopping by a less active and this lady comes up and asked where we were from. We got excited and stated who we were and where we were from. We started to teach and testify and that’s when she interrupted and said,  "Your Russian is horrible! You are young and have no idea why you are even here. You cannot comprehend who God is and that we are all pieces of god and we came from the sun." She then said, "You are spitting out useless information and she got up in my face and was like you are naive and stupid! That America is dumber than Russia!" ha-ha   I understood some of what she said but my companion had to translate some after and I was just laughing. 

Our 4th of July celebration was awesome and we had shikabobs and coke! mmmmm. We have district/zone meeting every Wednesday and we talked about finding. I am excited to meet President R this week and get to know him. I heard he is a pretty cool guy and is up to date on technology and is excited to meet us and the awesome members here in perm. We have some the coolest members and yesterday at church six of the less active members came to church most haven’t been for years. Success in my eyes!  We are trying to get people pumped into missionary work here so that there can be a stake someday here too. That would be cool and a big step. It was exciting this week when we saw two investigators walk in to the church off a contact that me a member received!  We had an awesome lesson plan but the member was so excited he shared the whole plan of salvation and some deep doctrine. ha-ha , their faces were priceless. We hope to meet with them this week and I will update you on that.

It was a great week and thanks for the mail from Pres. and Sis.H, Aunt Brenda, and emails!  You all rock and the support is awesome!  I hope to get more pics to you soon maybe next week if the R's bring my bags. I AM PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!!

Love Elder LeFevre

Interesting Week

So this is concluding my first week in Russia! It hasn't been easy at all for us. We supposedly had two investigators at first, but now we don’t have any. So Tuesday we spent most of our time calling potentials, formers, and trying to set up appointments with the rest of the members in the area. It was a pretty tiring week and I got to see some crazy, nasty, and neat stuff this week.

The first investigator we met with this week works as a chemist! He is extremely nice guy. We met with him and I told him that I loved chemistry, and this got us off into a tangent. He tried to explain to me in Russian chemistry and dissolvents. If you thought chemistry was hard, think about it in Russian. My head was about to burst. We gave him the lesson and invited him to be baptized and he accepted!! But he said he couldn't because of his work. 

So it has been fun talking with people on the street. I am not that outgoing but my companion has been helping me out talking to people and get phrases down. Contacting has been really tough and we have been trying to stay away from men who hit the bottle early and later. We can't go tracking here really because it is rude to even get inside a подъез and just knock and plus they are super sketch. We went in one during the week and it had a mix of stray dogs! We decided not to linger there. People love pigeons and cats here.

On Tuesday I had my first Russian Subway and you may think I am a traitor but it is better here! The chicken was really tender and not just sitting in a tray. It costs about 180 p. Super good!!

Wednesday we had zone conference. We don’t have districts because then it would just be companionship study. A native made borsch and it was Super AMAZING!! I heard it can be prepared better and that there are many different ways. So I guess I will need to taste test it.

The air is super humid and it has been really hot, especially on the buses! So many people get on these buses here and people are really not talkative on them. This whole week has been interesting as we have been making calls and people have been calling us. Drunk people have been calling us like crazy the past couple of days and telling us " I...LOVE...BAC BRUDA!" (Half in broken English and Russian).

Next, later in the week we met with the coolest people in Russia that are members. Their son lives in Utah after serving a mission he got married and lives there. They are super nice and love the missionaries and were happy to have us visit. Their home was nice! She likes to talk with everyone on facebook and the husband is deaf and blind, but he speaks Russian enough to understand. He was super happy and liked to make jokes about Russia and how his son is a traitor!! ha-ha  He also asked if I was black because I was from Vegas. It was super cool. We decided to visit everyone and drop by cookies and a script reference as a thank you note for everyone we met.

Weird thing that hit me was the fact that I have been forced to make meals with my companion by scratch. Speaking of which I made a cake today!! Ha-ha It is for our 4th of July Celebration. Which is going to rock!! We also are making tacos tonight and Friday for families. Tacos are the bomb!! супер Snickers Rock too! All is exciting and it is fun to be with the Russian people.

Love Ya all,
Elder LeFevre